Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Republicans seem dead-set on overriding Gov. Mike Beebe's veto of transparently unconstitutional legislation to guarantee a tax break on tracking sand, a $5 million hit on the treasury through the subterfuge of declaring sand "equipment." If the law meant anything, they wouldn't.

Thursday, March 13, 2014

The Arkansas legislature just passed a piece of unconstitutional legislation sponsored by Sen. Jonathan Dismang to cut an energy company's cost of business in Arkansas by $4 million by relabeling the sand injected underground for fracking as tax-exempt "equipment." It's symbolic of the shafting written much larger in shale gas plays around the country, led by the likes of Chesapeake Energy.

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Arkansas is already familiar with this story, but it bears mention. Mother Jones reports on new evidence of linkage of practices in fracking for gas and oil with earthquakes, here along the Wilzetta fault in Oklahoma.

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Good news for the shale gas industry in a report released today by the U.S. Geological Survey:
A study that examined the water quality of 127 shallow domestic wells in the Fayetteville Shale natural gas production area of Arkansas found no groundwater contamination associated with gas production, according to a report released today by the U.S. Geological Survey.

Today's headlines: Special interests rule in Arkansas

Friday, October 5, 2012

An amended class action lawsuit has been filed in federal court in Little rock against Southwestern Energy, XTO and Chesapeake Energy over the wells they've drilled to dispose of waste material by injecting it underground.

Monday, July 23, 2012

Sheffield Nelson, who's been leading a campaign to increase the severance tax on natural gas, said it will be Tuesday before he announces the committee's plans on continuing the petition drive for the initiative.

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Sheffield Nelson thinks XTO Energy (a subsidiary of Exxon) and Southwestern Natural, two publicly traded companies that are drilling for natural gas in Arkansas, have violated Securities and Exchange Commission rules on financial disclosure through representations made to fight a tax increase.

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Sheffield Nelson commissioned Dr. Charles Venus, a member of the Governor’s Council of Economic Advisors and a tax advisor to governors Rockefeller and Bumpers, to do an economic analysis on the impact of the gas severance tax.

Friday, May 4, 2012

For your reading pleasure: A policy maker's guide to the pluses and minuses of shale gas production from the National Conference of State Legislatures, a non-partisan, non-industry funded organization.

Monday, April 2, 2012

Oddly, this was an issue I was thinking about on the way into work: What has the oil industry, so hell bent on exploiting the Arctic and oil shales here, done to despoil the environment in oil-producing countries?

The Los Angeles Times reports on the sagging casino economy in Tunica, Miss., a sag due in part to increasing national competition.

Sen. Jason Rapert has announced on Facebook his plans to file this week a so-called trigger law — like those passed in four other states — that would make abortion illegal in Arkansas immediately if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade. Polling suggests the majority would oppose it.

The annual abortion protest marches were held around the country Sunday and, as usual, press accounts duly quoted the misinformation repeated there. From the coverage of the Arkansas march, this stood out:

Gov. Asa Hutchinson has made several public appearances today as part of the observance of King Day and his remarks have included lauding the state's 2017 action (and his own) in ending the dual observance of King's birthday with that of a man who fought to preserve slavery, Robert E. Lee. I have one brief observation on his remarks: